Peter Crouch has given an insider’s view on Rafa Benitez’s training methods and has admitted he can understand why his former manager was unsuccessful at Everton.
The ex-England striker played for Benitez at Liverpool for three years, where he went on to score 42 goals for the Blues’ bitter rivals.
The 40-year-old has previously praised the Spanish coach and suggested in August that Benitez could become “truly loved” by both sets of supporters on Merseyside.
However, a run of one win in 13 league games saw Benitez leave Everton on Sunday and Crouch has been honest about how the Spanish coach’s training methods could have led to discontent among the squad.
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“Everything was so scheduled and mechanical. Nothing off the cuff. Rafa wants to control everything, really,” he wrote in his column for the Daily Mail .
“Rafa would run towards you with the ball and ask, ‘How would you deal with this?’ We would then all move as a team, getting into shape. That was the warm-up: shape. Or how we were going to press (yes, pressing existed 15 years ago).”
Crouch continued: “We do not know what goes on behind closed doors but from the outside looking in, the players did not seem to be playing for him. Some of them have not played for a number of managers in recent years.
“What I can say from experience playing under him is everybody must buy into his methods if his team is to be successful.
“Training was not that enjoyable, it was quite regimented. Very tactical and difficult mentally more than anything. That constant battle of keeping yourself switched on.
“You do not mind that if you believe and for me, it was a privilege to be at Liverpool — I’d do whatever I was told.
“But if things do go badly, you are not performing to the maximum, I can see how players could turn.”
Benitez’s departure is the latest in a string of events that have disrupted Everton’s season so far, with the club’s director of medical services Danny Donachie, director of football Marcel Brands, and left-back Lucas Digne also having left the club.
The ECHO understands that Everton are considering a move for former Blues boss Roberto Martinez.
Wayne Rooney and Duncan Ferguson have also been reported to be among the top contenders to replace Benitez.
